7 Sins of Severus Snape
by StarDuchess
Summary: Severus Snape knows he is forever tainted by all seven deadly sins. Written for LJ challenge Snape LDWS. Wrath, sloth, gluttony, pride, envy, greed, lust. Damnation and redemption. COMPLETE!
1. The Road to Hell

A/N: I signed myself up for the new Severus Snape - Last Drabble Writer Standing (snape_ldws) challenge over on LiveJournal as Snape is my favorite character and the theme for Round 1 is the Seven Deadly Sins. How delicious does that sound! I am going to post each drabble here as a collection after voting has closed each Saturday, and I will continue to write for the prompts even if I get eliminated along the way. This first one is a practice run that was suggested by one of the members. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (although I wish I could command Snape!) and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Sin**

******Title: The Road to Hell**  


**Word Count: 415**

**Warnings: torture and rape**

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Severus Snape had walked down the muddy road to hell early on in his life. Even before his majority, he had started down that wretched path and had assumed to pass the point of no return upon taking the Dark Mark. He had stumbled back from the precipice with Lily Evans' death, but although Albus Dumbledore had assured him that redemption was possible, the former Death Eater did not believe it, especially as new events began unfolding.

The Dark Lord had returned to a living body a mere two months ago. Since then he had been calling his former legions back into active duty, rebuilding his strength and learning the current state of things in Wizarding Britain. Once a base of operations had been established and the Inner Circle was firmly reinstated, Voldemort allowed his people a revelry to celebrate his return.

Sent to observe the meetings and report back intended plans, Snape stood among his 'peers' holding a glass of scotch and participating in conversations about what targets to attack first when Yaxley and some others pulled in a resistant witch and an older couple who looked very much like her.

"Here ye go, m'Lord! Found 'em in a seedy muggle neighborhood where no one'll go lookin' for 'em!" Yaxley proudly advertised.

Jeers and shouts of triumph went up around the room as Voldemort consented for his men to continue. The young girl looked scared but defiant whereas the couple wore absolute terror on their faces. They started by torturing the married pair, exuberant in the cries and struggles of the daughter, later turning on her directly, her screams mounting the walls in piercing crescendos. The vermin laughed at their victims' plight.

There was nothing Snape could do. His orders were to not interfere, no matter the cost, and to participate enough that suspicions would not be drawn to him. It was for the Greater Good, Albus had told him. The Order needed an inside man to reveal vital information. It would be worth every sacrifice to bring down the Dark Lord, so he forced himself to endure their pleas and cries and to take his turn plundering her abused body just to assure his position as spy.

It was a sin for them to rape and murder this muggleborn witch and her parents.

It was a sin for him to stand by and watch and participate and do nothing to help.

The Road to Hell was surely paved in the Greater Good's intentions.


	2. Wrath

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter (although I wish I could command Snape!) and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Wrath**

******Title: Onomatopoeia of Wrath**  


**Word Count: 134**

**Warnings: violence**

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BANG! came the sound from the living room at Spinner's End as picture frames fell from the wall.

What could he have done differently?

CRASH! splintered the wooden chairs as he hurled them violently one into the other.

Why couldn't he have said something to stop this madness?

SMASH! shattered the glass of dozens of liquor bottles as he raked them out of the cupboard.

Who was he to tell his father not to drink?

THUNK! went the thicker-than-normal rum bottle as it ricocheted off the countertop and knocked him in the head.

How could he let his father hurt his mother?

THUD! landed a teen Severus on the floor while clutching his bleeding scalp and reeling from the pain.

When was he going to accept that he had no control over his parents?

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**A/N:** I had something completely different written for Wrath and then panicked at the last moment thinking it wasn't violent enough and would fit better for greed or envy. I had this quick little scene in my head and just quickly put it down with simple questions and sounds. Not my usual writing style! Please, let me know what you think, even if you feel it's terrible.


	3. Sloth

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Sloth**

******Title: There's Always Tomorrow**  


**Word Count: 268**

**Warnings: none**

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Time dripped slowly onto the emptiness of Snape's life, evaporating just as quickly into non-being. The Potions Master sat in the dark staring at a dwindling fire-the only heat source in his rooms-a goblet of wine suspended in air by long fingers. His being was tired but he made no move to find his bed. That sort of rest had a price, a price paid for in nightmares or waking to the Dark Mark's excruciating calling. No, it was better to stay awake-stay awake and brood at the bitterness of reality.

Too many horrific images had been recalled from Potter's memories during Occlumency lessons for the professor to continue to ignore his past's pains. Make no mistake, the boy was still an insufferable brat, bent on lawlessness and a deep-rooted hero complex, but he was not as attention-seeking as was first suspected. Abuse and neglect, guilt and anger, the teenager carried deep within himself and Snape should have recognized it. Only his own lack of forgiveness toward James had prevented him from seeing beneath the Potter facade.

He had wasted too many years with the child already, his promise to protect Lily's son broken first by omission then by scorn. If he was to have any hope for redemption, he must mend this breach between them before the Dark Lord killed them all. It meant acknowledging that he had been wrong, so the wizard had not undertaken this discussion for three weeks now.

He should get up and go apologize to the boy, but the wine lulled him into inaction.

Tomorrow.

He would go talk to him tomorrow...


	4. Gluttony

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Gluttony**

******Title: No Life But Excess**  


**Word Count: 150**

**Warnings: none**

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I prowl the corridors nightly in hopes of catching that impertinent brat who manages by some miracle to elude me, but the joy when I do find him is marvelous indeed. Imagine my glee when I also get to mock him three times a week up close and personal.

He thinks I harrass him because I detest his father, but the contrary is also true: I adore his mother.

I used to steel glances at her from around hedges and bends in the corridors and behind my textbooks as I thought up new hexes to use against Potter. She would smile at him, and each time I pretended it was for me while envisioning curses upon him.

For a decade after they died, I lived in darkness, parched and starved. Until he came. Now I take every opportunity to insult that face and look into those emerald eyes once again.

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**A/N:** This received the prestigious Mod's Choice Award for the week, but it was also eliminated by the voters. Go figure.


	5. Pride

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Pride**

******Title: The Boy Underneath**  


**Word Count: 218**

**Warnings: mentions previous child abuse**

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He had always taken great care in schooling his features so that no one would see, no one would know the frailty of the boy underneath. He would not be that boy. He would not show fear and he would not cry. Complaining was for the incompetent sods who could not change their ways and had not the intelligence to overcome obstacles. Coddling was a crutch for those who would not lock down and school their emotions and were too weak-willed to sort out their own problems.

So what if he was mistreated and beaten at home? The world was harsh and cruel and the sooner that he knew that the better able he was to handle it. He could stand up on his own. He needed no one and nothing but his own strength and mind. He knew he must appear strong in front of others or else suffer their advances of which he had had enough from his father. Never again, he told himself. Never again would he let others control his destiny.

But as Snape sunk to his knees before the aging wizard, his body wracked with hysterical sobs, his promise of servitude upon his lips, he wondered where his dignity had gone. Suddenly he had become the boy he said he would not be.


	6. Envy

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Envy**

******Title: Slytherin Green**  


**Word Count: 399**

**Warnings: a few cuss words**

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It was as it had always been. Ostracized, Snape sat on the outskirts of his peers, looking on with longing and contempt. Everyone was more glamorous than him, toned and athletic or smooth and supple, while he was awkward, gangly and unkept. Their families all had more money than his did, more position. His father's name was a waste, and his maternal grandfather had practically disowned his mother and refused to acknowledge him, so he would get nowhere in that social circle. Only two things Snape had going for him- his friendship with Lily Evans, which had been slowly deteriorating for months now, and his mind and knowledge, primarily his potions ability, but of course no one ever cared about that. They all hated potions, taking much more an interest in charms and flashy spells.

Point of fact, the crowd was once again worshiping that obnoxious bastard, James Potter. As if Quidditch wasn't enough, flashing red and gold all over the school like some Beltane bonfire, Potter had to go flaunting his transfiguration skills changing all the benches in the Great Hall into galloping horses. The worst part was that he still would not leave Lily alone, instead he hoisted her shrieking up onto the horse-bench next to him. Dammit, he had a dozen other girls lusting after him, why did he have to pick Snape's one and only friend, who clearly never liked James.

Snape spent hours researching hexes and even some slightly dark curses to reap upon the Mauraders. They had traded insults back and forth for years now, but his enemies always seemed to have the upper hand. He'd been looking through _Masterful Hexes of the 13th Century_ when he heard a spell cast.

"Mobilicorpus!"

_Shit!_ he thought as he was lifted upside down in the yard. _Calm down, Severus. You can deal with this._ Except that Lily came to his defense and all dignity was lost.

"I don't need help from a filthy Mudblood like her!"

As Lily huffed and walked away, his tormentors following her, Snape realized that he had lost her too. Now he had no one and it appeared as if James claimed another victory. Rage consumed him as he looked upon the emptiness of his life.

Maybe there was another way to get what he wanted.

He stumbled off to contact Lucius Malfoy. It was time to make some new friends.


	7. Greed

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Greed**

******Title: Stronger, Smarter, Better**  


**Word Count: 250**

**Warnings: none

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He could taste it in the air, like Amortentia freshly brewed. The lure was fascinating and compelling. It was a drug that ensnared his senses promising him the world at his fingertips and Lily in his bed.

He had craved this knowledge since he was a boy. Each time the blows landed on his small frame, Snape promised he would become stronger, to never let another hurt him physically again. Then during his Hogwarts years as each hex was thrown between him and those insufferable Gryffindors, he vowed to become smarter than his classmates, to never let them hurt him psychologically again. And after _she_ dumped him, he swore to become more powerful, to never be hurt emotionally again.

So it was that he poured himself into his studies: dark arts, poisons, sword-play, legilimency. Research captivated all of his attention, even sometimes overriding his need for food or sleep. His association with the Death Eaters grew daily until he was finally granted an audience with Voldemort.

"I know your desires, Severus," hissed the Dark Lord. "There are many things I have learned from Salazar that I can impart to you if you join me. A potions mastery is in your future, its uses many and varied, and once combined with my leadership, you can take revenge on those who've done you wrong."

Snape accepted his support willingly without examining the consequences for this is what he thirsted, his leprechaun's gold at the end of the rainbow: power, control... _magic_.


	8. Lust

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: Lust**

******Title: Ruination**  


**Word Count: 490**

**Warnings: - EXPLICIT RAPE! - DO NOT READ if you would be offended, Severitus origins story**

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The firm silkiness of her wrist felt like rose petals against his own gritty, calloused hand. He was sure that his palms were abrading her body like sandpaper on suede but he didn't care. His mind was clouded with desire, a need to possess, to own.

Subconsciously, he heard a hissing sound comping from deep in his mind. He didn't really know the words being said but he could feel its intentions.

_Sseverusss, take thiss woman. You have earned the right. Shhhhe iss your reward for joining me. Take her now._

"Sev, please, let me go!"

The voice in his head said otherwise, and Snape was beyond caring. His mind had snapped at the thought of those two together, and he wanted nothing more than to take what had long been denied him.

"No! How dare you marry that toerag, Potter! I was your friend. I am the one who loves you above all things. It should have been me at that altar!"

"Severus, please, don't do this!"

He pinned her arms above her head and banished their robes. Snape marveled at the strands of satin hair, as red as a dragon's breath, and at her eyes that glittered like the most perfect emeralds even if they were filled with fear and betrayal. He reveled in the smooth heat of her under him, bruising the slight frame like grapes crushed in a wine press. Thin, cracked lips scraped along her jaw, down her throat to her pert nipples, while he ignored her pleas and cries. She squirmed and kicked but to no avail.

_Sseverusss, there iss no need to wait. You have longed for thiss. Take her now. Shhh iss yoursss._

Red-hot passion sped through his veins. He kissed and sucked and bit everywhere with his mouth while his lower half pressed his advantage. An inferno pushed him onward.

Shrieks filled the air as he pierced her secret place.

_YESSS! Take her! Hurt her! Make her pay for rejecting you! Shhhe iss yourss to do with as you wishh._

The newly formed Death Eater was happy to oblige. The one below him had no defenses as he plundered her raw depths, the shouts of pain mixing with the sibilant tongue to drive him wild, and in no time he shuddered his release.

As soon as the ardour left him, the haze covering his mind lifted and his reason returned. He froze. Shock ran though him as he stared down at the sobbing woman. Horror at what he had just done smacked him in the gut, and he rolled away to wretch in a corner. He lay there in abject misery, not even able to apologize when she picked herself up and stumbled off.

Any hope of salvaging their once-close relationship was shattered beyond repair. He had raped his best friend, the one he professed to love. He was wholly condemned now.

Nine months later, his true punishment, Harry James Potter, was born.

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A/N: Initially I just set out to show Snape's yearning for Lily, nothing too dark, but then that snake started hissing in my ear urging me to take it further and further. There are lots of Severitus stories with the background of him raping Lily and she becoming pregnant with Harry from that, but I hoped to make this one unique by utilizing Voldemort in a more intimate role in the process.

Thanks for reading! That wraps up all seven sins, but there are more themes on the way: damnation and redemption, so stick around!


	9. DamnationRedemption

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompts: Damnation and Redemption**

******Title: Coming Full Circle**  


**Word Count: 250 x 2**

**Warnings: - character death**

**A/N: These were the two prompts for the final week of Snape_LDWS Round 1. They are meant to be read as one whole.**

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**Damnation**

He had stood before this man on numerous occasions over the past years of his life, some in anxiety such as the moment of his sorting, some in trepidation as when he had been caught hexing his fellow- not that he would ever call the Mauraders that- students, some in quiet smugness like when his teachers gave him extra recognition. But this time, it was different. This time he was WRONG. He had chosen the wrong path, walked down the wrong street, and the object of his desire was being asked to pay the price.

No matter how he feared the loathing in those piercing blue eyes, he knew he had to beg for help. He couldn't let Lily die. If so, he would be damned for all time.

He groveled at the Headmaster's feet, moreso than he'd ever done for the Dark Lord. The elder wizard despised him, it was clear, but he shoved that aside in pursuit of his goal.

The old man asked him what he would give for her safety. He was confounded by this. Shouldn't Dumbledore care about the Potters? Wouldn't he hide them away? Do something to protect his Golden Family? For an instant, he was afraid that the meddling old coot would do nothing, until it dawned on him he was being tested. Rage filled his mind as he realized that Dumbledore doubted the purity of his devotion.

Rising to the bait, he said, "Anything," and knew instantly that he was damned anyway.

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**Redemption**

It was amazing how things always came around full circle. Here he was again in front of the Headmaster whose sapphire eyes had lost their sparkle and the once proud countenance was now lined with pain, defeated by his own students. Snape saw the regret in the slump of the frail shoulders, a wish to have saved more lives, a longing to erase the mistakes of his past, an ache to see old loved ones, all of the things burried within Snape's own black heart. There was nothing more to say between the two, mentor and mentee, except for one final order softly spoken.

Wand already raised, Snape occluded all other emotions and dwelt on the anger inside. How dare he ask this of him! He'd come through so many trials, been taunted and ridiculed by faculty and Order members alike, endured hours of torture, all for the chance to follow the path back to forgiveness, and instead, it lead here.

The old man had lied to him. There would be no relief from remorse, no salve for sorrow. He knew he'd been a fool to believe in such things.

In a spark of epiphany, he understood that redemption was for the weak.

Focusing on the life before him, he took all the bitterness and betrayal and spat out the end.

As he watched the dead body fall, he knew he'd come back to that place of loss when Lily died, and there would be no end to the grief.


	10. Simmering to a Boil

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and make no money off of this. This is for fun and writing practice, and I hope I can inspire you to critical insights concerning our favorite dark wizard.

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**Prompt: all the sins**

******Title: Simmering to a Boil**  


**Word Count: 344**

**Warnings: - hint of child abuse; one very long sentence!**

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With each passing second that his father's yells reverberated through the house, a melody supported by the steadily pounding rhythm of his fists while his mother's cries laced the air with discordant harmonies, his own tears of inability cascading down his pale face, certain that there was no escape until he could attend Hogwarts at age eleven;

with each passing minute that the kids in his neighborhood taunted and tormented him in retaliation for his accidental magic, which had leapt out from his center and altered the world around them, sending his peers into shrieking fits of panic and dismay, his own loss of control driving him mad;

with each passing hour that Potter and Black mocked and tripped and jinxed and schemed against him, conjuring new and more devious humiliations that ate at his dignity until _she _had the audacity to come to his defense;

with each passing day that Lily grew more distant from him, bemoaning his other acquaintances, his study of the Dark Arts, his careless use of the hurtful word 'mudblood', even as he desperately tried to cling to the tattered garment of their friendship;

with each passing week that Lily smiled more and more sweetly at _him_, laughing at his poorly made jokes, his continuing antics, never giving a backwards glance at her old playmate who dropped deeper into despair, pursuing sinister hexes and curses, arcane magic, anything by which to claim power and prestige over his enemies, to reclaim her;

with each passing month that her body grew larger with Potter's child, while she bestowed upon her husband a love that he could never be privy to, would never know;

with each passing moment that an injustice went unchecked another drop of the deadly ingredients anger, hate, fear and suffering were slowly added to a swirling mixture of revenge, the explosive chemistry building to a bursting point of spectacular pain as Severus Snape gave the oath that would forever alter everyone's destinies, his own ferventness burning through the layers of his skin as the Dark Mark claimed him.

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**A/N:** And, that wraps it up! Hope you enjoyed the dark side of Severus Snape! Please review and tell me what you think, even if you hated it.


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